Residency rights for my kids

Ok, I got an APRC, non-marriage based. My oldest kid is 17, she has grown up in Taiwan most of her life. As far as I understand once she hits 20, she looses her residency right and then what? The lady at the foreign police suggested that my daughter teach English for three years and then apply for permanent residence. Very funny.
Is there no legal provision for children of residents who grow up in Taiwan for all or most of their life and then suddenly have less rights than a tourist once they turn 20? Seems strange to me.

Can anyone shed some light on this or suggest a course of action?

Greetings,

Yali

Has anyone here succeeded to have their kids’ dependency visa extended past their 20th birthday?

Yali

[quote=“shiyali2”]Ok, I got an APRC, non-marriage based. My oldest kid is 17, she has grown up in Taiwan most of her life. As far as I understand once she hits 20, she looses her residency right and then what? …
Is there no legal provision for children of residents who grow up in Taiwan for all or most of their life and then suddenly have less rights than a tourist once they turn 20? Seems strange to me.

Can anyone shed some light on this or suggest a course of action?[/quote]
As Chairman of the National Network of Foreign Spouses I can tell you that our group argued with the government about this for many years.

At the age of 20, your son/daughter will be considered an adult, and hence must have his/her own “purpose of residency,” i.e. they cannot be dependent on mommy or daddy.

It seems to me that the logical course of action is to apply for the child’s permanent residency a few months before his/her twentieth birthday. Have you considered such a strategy?

Yes, it is true that with permanent residency one must stay in the Taiwan area 183 days or more per year. But, if the child later goes to school overseas, he/she can use the official school paperwork to apply for a “leave of absence” for the periods outside of Taiwan, and during those years when it is not possible to meet the 183-day physical presence requirement.

In most cases, a student studying overseas will still be able to come back to Taiwan for visits perhaps two or three times (or more) per year.

(P.S. You have not stated your spouse’s nationality. I am assuming that your spouse is not a Taiwan citizen.)

Thank you for the reply. It is a small comfort to know that this issue has been under discussion. Yes, both myself and my spouse are not Taiwanese. Applying for permanent residence presents a major challenge when it comes to meeting the financial requirements. Naturally a 20 year old would not be able to prove that he has worked for three years earning double the minimum wage. The other option is to donate 5 million in pocket money to my kid and have him/her put it into a bank account. I don’t know how many people have that kind of small change lying around.
A third option would be for my kid to go and study Chinese at one of the official Chinese language centers at various universities around the island. Did I leave anything out? Any other options?

Yali

Hi Yali,

I was in the same boat as your children. I also grew up in Taiwan. Before I turned 20, I was able to stay in Taiwan, and I was even able to work at any job. I have a foreign passport, I was not born in Taiwan, but my adoptive mother is Taiwanese. Sadly, Taiwan laws use the term “blood-relation” so I have the same rights as any other foreigner living and staying in Taiwan. I guess it is my fault that my parents raised me here and that I enjoy living here. Anyway, I am sorry that I do not have any suggestions.

Moderator’s note: The key point in this discussion, which this poster has not mentioned, is whether he/she was 20 years old at the time the newly revised Nationality Law went into effect in February 2000. If he/she was under 20 at that time, it would be possible to obtain Taiwan nationality directly. Otherwise, no.

So how did you get around the problem? Are you still in Taiwan?

Thanks for the input!

Yali

If you apply right before the child reaches the age of 20, you can use the parents’ assets together with any assets the child has … so that may make it easier to meet the NT$ 5 million requirement.

Also … there are “accounting agencies” which specialize in dealing with these kinds of proof of financial assets issues, and you might want to talk to them …

If you apply right before the child reaches the age of 20, you can use the parents’ assets together with any assets the child has … so that may make it easier to meet the NT$ 5 million requirement.

Also … there are “accounting agencies” which specialize in dealing with these kinds of proof of financial assets issues, and you might want to talk to them …[/quote]

That’s very useful advice. Thank you! I appreciate that. Is there any slim prospect that the foreigner’s residency laws may be amended in this area within the next few years? Or is this issue completely off the table?

Thanks again for the info,

Yali

Sorry, one more thing, these types of “accounting agencies” you mentioned, how do you call them in Chinese? Is it those small companies I sometimes see that arrange company registrations (gongsi hanghao), and related accounting services?

Thank you,

Yali